The Pantagraph Bloomington, IL

Redbirds' Murphy Earns Valley Award

Illinois State's Ben Murphy was named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Week after helping the Redbirds' men's golf team to a fourth-place finish in the Samford Intercollegiate tournament earlier this week. The senior shot a 5-under 211 to tie for third place. It was his first top-five finish of the season.

Thunder Loses Early Advantage

BLOOMINGTON - The Bloomington PrairieThunder continued its early magic Wednesday night, scoring in the opening minute for the third straight game and building an early 2-0 lead. Kalamazoo saved its best for later while picking up an important point in the playoff chase.

Lincoln in the Zone

DECATUR - The Lincoln High School basketball team, with its signature 1-2-2 zone defense and precise offensive sets, is as unique a challenge as anything Decatur MacArthur has seen this season. The Railsplitters did what they seemingly always do well in Wednesday's Class 3A Decatur Sectional semifinal against MacArthur.

Big Ten Commish: Football Playoff Not Inevitable'

CHAMPAIGN - The Big Ten Network is turning a profit. The 65-team NCAA Tournament field does not need to be expanded. The Big Ten will not play football games on Thursday or Friday nights. And, the strength of the Big Ten Conference is that it will have nine basketball teams on the Selection Committee's board for NCAA Tournament consideration this weekend. Oh, yes: If, like the Mountain West Conference, you're pushing a college football playoff to decide the national championship, you'll have ...

Flooding Closes Part of Illinois River to Anglers

It happens nearly every year about this time. Rains drench Illinois just as sauger fishermen prepare to enjoy the best fishing of the year on the Illinois River. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources this week closed the waterway from Grundy County through LaSalle and Bureau counties to Putnam County after recent downpours sent the river over flood stage.

From Pages Past

March 12 5 years ago (2004): Illinois State's fifth-seeded women's basketball team broke out of a shooting funk by drilling a record 13 3-pointers to claim a 77-63 victory over Indiana State in the quarterfinals of the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament at Springfield, Mo. Katie Donovan led the Redbirds with 22 points and nine rebounds.

Cirone Three-Peats All-Valley Honors; Krick, Lewis 2nd Team

NORMAL - To the surprise of no one, Illinois State senior point guard Kristi Cirone made it a three-peat Wednesday by earning first- team all-Missouri Valley Conference women's basketball honors for the third straight year. Cirone, ISU's all-time career scoring and assist leader, was also named to the all-defensive team for the third consecutive year.- Junior guard Maggie Krick and junior center Nicolle Lewis were both named to the second team for the regular-season champion Redbirds.

No Valley, No Ncaas?Isu Women Want to Control Their Own Fate

Robin Pingeton and the Illinois State women's basketball team know the cold, hard facts. A 24-6 regular-season record, Missouri Valley Conference championship and an RPI of 47 probably won't be enough to secure an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament.

Eureka's Prosser Earns Record 4th League Honor

Eureka High School senior Jordan Prosser has become the first basketball player in the 31-year history of the Corn Belt Conference to be voted to the all-league first team four times. Each year the Bradley recruit was a unanimous selection.

Iwu's Solari Tops Charts in 5 Stats

BLOOMINGTON -- Illinois Wesleyan junior Christina Solari earned College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Player of the Year honors largely by leading the league champion Titans in scoring and rebounding. Yet Solari's impact cannot be fully appreciated without a more extensive statistical perusal.

Injuries Couldn't Keep Heydorn Down for Long

BLOOMINGTON -- Mallory Heydorn labels her health good enough at this point. Muddling through a litany of injuries the past three seasons, the Illinois Wesleyan senior has soared well above good enough in a spectacular career that continues Friday in the sectional round of the NCAA Division III Tournament. I'm certain her career would have been even more outstanding with records and accomplishments had she not had injuries, said IWU coach Mia Smith, whose top-ranked team meets No. 4 Wisconsin-...